Dr. Maisonet Nogueras Funded to Study Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals
Dr. Mildred Maisonet Nogueras, Assistant Professor in the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology in the East Tennessee State University College of Public Health, has received an R03 grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences of the National Institutes of Health to study prenatal exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals and anti-müllerian hormone concentrations in female adolescent study participants.
The reproductive lifespan of the woman is largely determined by factors that regulate the number of follicles laid down during fetal development and their subsequent degeneration rate during adult life. Of concern is a possible role of endocrine disrupting chemicals in dysregulating the number of follicles or in promoting depletion of the follicle pool. Endocrine disrupting chemicals have been detected in human ovarian follicular fluid. In addition, concentrations of certain types of these chemicals detected in cord blood and amniotic fluid from pregnant women suggest human fetal exposure and the possibility of follicular alterations beginning at an early developmental stage.
To date, the literature assessing potential human effects of exposure to environmental endocrine disrupting chemicals on markers of ovarian reserve, such as anti-müllerian hormone, is sparse. The goal of the project is to contribute to current knowledge by conducting secondary analysis of data collected in female adolescents participating in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children to assess the association of prenatal exposure to perfluoroalkyl sulfonate and organochlorine pesticides with anti-müllerian hormone concentrations.
Dr. Maisonet Nogueras and her team will also assess temporal changes in hormone concentrations in relation to these exposures. The Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children is a population-based, birth cohort with a long follow-up period and extensive data collection including the assessment of clinical measures in a large subset of participants. Results of the proposed study will address the rather sparse, existing evidence and support the development of new hypothesis.